Foxit Reader

At a Glance

This free utility lets you view PDF files--and it takes up less space than Adobe Reader.

Foxit
Reader is a fast, free, lightweight alternative to Adobe
Reader for opening and displaying PDF files. It's also
feature-packed, though it lacks the print-to-PDF and conversion
capabilities of fellow freebie Nitro
PDF Reader.

I've been using Foxit Reader since back in the day… The
day when Adobe Reader had become a fat slob of a program that took
forever to boot and load files. Adobe has improved greatly, but so
has Foxit Reader. The latest version has a new look that mimics
Microsoft Office 2007/2010 somewhat, and adds support for XML Form
Architecture form filling, as well as Microsoft Active Directory
Rights Management service. It also offers the ability to capture
text, copy and paste it, though there's no wholesale export.

I now use Nitro PDF Reader, because it offers print-to-PDF and
creation abilities for free, but I'll be working Foxit back into
the rotation simply because of its speed. It's perhaps twice as
fast as Nitro at opening, and especially searching files, and
time is money.

Note: Foxit Reader 5 will install a toolbar and
change your default search engine to Ask if you don't disable these
options.